written on the backs of bonds from the 50's, originally uploaded by boygirlparty.

that's my letter, composed on the back of 1950's bonds, written to one of my penpalparty penpals this week. hope it gets there soon, before this photo becomes a spoiler of things to come!

on the subject of penpals, my friend gabby sent me a story written about these people - i heard about them earlier this year but it something else entirely to see their lovely handiwork.

penpal party round 2 is beginning. why is it that i always pick the most busy and insane times in my life to start a timesuck project? in any event, it has been worth the time and work -- penpal party round 1 has been a success so far with lots of people reporting back with happy stories. (see photos + stuff here: http://www.boygirlparty.com/penpalparty )

that reminds me to share my own little anecdote. this isn't the first time i've organized a project like this.
back in 2001, i started a project called 'penpal nation'
i stamped and self-addressed about 200 blank vintage postcards and left them around the country, handed them out at [music] shows i played, gave them to strangers. about 50 postcards made it back to me. it was interesting.

i like mail.

strange trees 2, originally uploaded by boygirlparty.

been busy! see also: post on my other blog

desk, originally uploaded by boygirlparty.

been working like a maniac on some exciting new projects. from painting + designing to the penpal party (see my previous post), holiday orders, social media, upcoming shows and deadlines, etc. i feel like i am about to short circuit, but i love this time of year for exactly this reason. i love the momentum!

in other news, i started a facebook page for boygirlparty today. won't you please visit?
http://www.facebook.com/pages/boygirlpartycom/216242986205
(and feel free to spread the word, i'm not sure how these things function otherwise)

DRAWsome bear, originally uploaded by boygirlparty.

I'm putting together a penpal chain in about an hr. Thought of the idea on Twitter when a bunch of people sympathized w/ my message about being frustrated with penpals who don't write back.

If you want in, email me before noon PST at susie at! boygirlparty dot com! Here goes nothing...

Edit: for PENPAL PARTY #2, email thepenpalparty[at]gmail.com and I'll fill you in when it comes time for round 2!
visit http://boygirlparty.com/penpalparty for more info!

The whole thing is so weird: my obsession with random-internet-photos led me to an incidence of US AS A RANDOM INTERNET PHOTO. Insane. It feels like time travel or something!

bird vs. narwhal, originally uploaded by boygirlparty.

shana pointed out that this button looks like a narwhal when rotated.
whoa.

ermine moth, originally uploaded by boygirlparty.

it's 84 degrees today here in San Diego, but still somehow feels like fall. Or indian summer. maybe it's the daylight savings thing -- i always dread the fall one, because the sun in my eyes at 6am makes it so i can't sleep, and the darkness at 5pm makes it so i can't work! probably the only perk of living in indiana, in my opinion, is that they don't bother with daylight savings at all over there. it was always such a source of confusion when driving from chicago to michigan (not unlike the time traveller's wife! we spent tons of time in south haven as kids) when in indiana we never knew what time it was supposed to be.

I feel right now like I have so much on my plate -- too much -- but I know I've handled this kind of work load in the past and I know I can do it again. I've been trying to use my time off to do good things for myself: whether it's taking in a good museum exhibit, going for a walk, or cooking a really awesome meal from scratch. i think that's how i weathered the storms in the past: balancing life with work, and i need to learn to do that again!

which reminds me: i welcome any fall recipes! If you have a good one, I'd love to get it. I've been making lots of curry + snickerdoodles these days.

Also, I've been blogging more over on my site -- really mostly about the shop and what's new with me and art. today I posted some paintings over there. But comments are enabled, so please visit me over there sometime.

ok. over and out.

quail necklace, originally uploaded by boygirlparty.

trying to get back into the swing of things between life, work and the shop.. not much to say, i've just been working night&day like a maniac trying to catch up.

twitter says it's national oatmeal day. does such a day really exist?
or is it like 'opposite day'?

peter's nest, originally uploaded by boygirlparty.

it always feels weird to get back to work after a major event in my life (buying a house, having an art show...) part of me wants to reply to the 200+ people i get emails from every day "just wait a minute! this girl is positively exhausted! something big happened in her life and she needs to read a book or two and catch up on some sleep and go grocery shopping before she can handle anything next!" but alas, it's time to just move on, cause after the big event (art show, wedding, house/moving) is over, you really no longer have an excuse to take a break.

on a totally opposite note: thank you so much for everyone's warm congrats and kind words on my most recent post abt the wedding! i will share some more photos soon from the big day soon (although our hired photos won't be ready for another two months?)

but for now, maybe just look at the photo above of little peter p. finch and his nest, and marvel that a creature that small can build something so sturdy and soft and comforting.